Barefoot Blonde. This is actually the only blog I read, and I just love Amber Fillerup so much. She is so sweet and unapologetic and motivated, and I think her blog is really fun to read. I love this post and this post. Also, I am dyyying for a set of her hair extensions but I know there’s no point because there is NO way I would style or take care of them properly haha.

Taline Gabriel’s Insta account. My #1 instagram account. Taline’s aesthetic is stunning and so inspirational to me. I try not to scroll through insta too much because I find it overwhelming, but I always check hers for updates.

Crio Bru. The best coffee replacment ever. I still drink (and love) coffee, but I feel soo much better when I drink Crio Bru. Seriously love this stuff.

FabFitFun box. I’ve been reviewing wellness boxes for an article I’m writing for Women’s Daily, and I got the chance to try out one of the FFF boxes. They totally live up to the hype!!!! In love.

These songs from Taylor Swift’s new album: Gorgeous, Call it What You Want, New Years Day.

This sweater. You know when you buy someting and instantly have no idea how you ever lived without it?

Off the Vine and How I Built This podcasts. I’m a morning person to begin with, but I seriously jump out of bed on Monday and Tuesday mornings because that’s when these podcasts air! They’re so good. My fave OTV ep is the one she just did with Girl With No Job, and some of my fave HIBT eps are DryBar, Five Guys, TOMS, Power Rangers, Southwest Airlines- basically all of them (there are a couple boring ones like Framebridge, Chipotle, and Samuel Adams, so skip ’em).

My mug. I just love it. Mine is white with black font but it looks like they just have pink left.

LURE cups. I got these to review for Women’s Daily, and I am OBSESSED! I use them all the time. You can read my review here if you want to know more about them.

Essential oils for my skin and hair. I love essential oils so much and use them daily in a lot of different ways, but I especially love using them for my hair (particularly geranium) and on my skin (particularly bergamot). Remember to always dilute your oils before using them! I won’t go into anymore details because there is a TON of info about oils online. I usually buy my oils from Sage.

Persimmons. They’re in season and they are soo delicious.

These shows: Modern Family (always), This is Us, Riverdale (terrible, but also so good), and- forever and always- The Office (currently rewatching for the 10000 time).

Coconut Bowls sent me a couple of their bowls and spoons, and I am really in love with them! They are made from coconut shells and I think my smoothie bowls look adorable in them.

Cinnamon toast crunch is my all time favourite sugary cereal. There’s just nothing better, but I’m not one to eat a lot of sugar and junk food, so I wanted to make a healthy smoothie bowl version of it. This turned out even better than I expected, and it’s definitely one of my top 3 favourite smoothie recipes! I hope you love it as much as I do!

Add all ingredients to a food processor and pulse until combined. Enjoy on your smoothie bowl, as a cereal, or simply by the spoonful.

*I’m an affiliate for Coconut Bowls, so if you buy something from their site, I earn commission. Right now, I’m an affiliate of just two companies, coconut bowls and philosophie superfoods. I chose them both because I love their products and would recommend them even if I didn’t make a commission.

If you know me even a little bit, you know that I am obsessed with new york. I talk about it an obnoxious amount and name drop it like no other, but I can’t help it!! Yes, I know it sounds pretentious when I talk about my favourite places in soho, and no I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon. :p

I wanted to share some of my favourite spots in the city in today’s post. Just like in my toronto post, these aren’t necessarily places I’d say you have to visit if you’re there for say a three day weekend or something, but if you have time to really explore the city, I definitely recommend these spots.

Also, just in case anyone is wondering how I was able to spend a decent amount of time in nyc over the last few years, I’ll tell ya. I feel like Instagram/online life is so full of smoke and mirrors and you always see people in these amazing places and you’re like how the hell are they traveling all the time? They must have so much money! I’m always big on total transparency, so here’s how I’ve managed to spend a few months in this crazy expensive city: a good friend of mine lived there and she is absolutely amazing and invited me to visit literally whenever I wanted. I did a few 10 day (ish) trips visiting her, but I would also stay at her place when she traveled, so I got to do a couple of month long stays while she was away.

There is NO WAY I could afford to just travel to nyc and stay for five weeks if I was paying for accommodations, but thanks to Chelsea my lifelong dream of spending lots of time in new york came true. She moved recently, so my free ticket is gone, so now it’s up to me to figure out a way to be able to live there. (suggestions are very welcome!!).

Oh and my last trip to new york was for a week in September when I went with my friends for my 30th. We stayed in air bnbs and it was v pricey. But one of the best trips of my life.

Anyways, here are some of the places I absolutely love starting with, of course, coffee shops.

SNACKSCha Cha MatchaMilk Bar. Locations around nyc, but my favourite is the Upper West Side location. Get the truffles!! and the Klossies..and the cereal milk ice cream. At this location they also do cake walks on weekends and give away a free cake!The End Brooklyn. Home of the unicorn latte!!!!Ample Hills Creamery (ice cream!)Van Leeuwen. Their earl grey ice cream is THE best ice cream I’ve ever had, and that’s saying something.The Bagel Store (Brooklyn). This is where you’ll find the famous rainbow bagels!
$1 dollar pizza spots

Le Bain. The Standard hotel’s rooftop bar overlooking the HudsonNew York Pilates. My favourite workout studio of all time. Can’t choose between the Bowery and soho locations, they’re both so amazing. My dream is to go to one of their Tulum retreats.
Colombia campus. So beautiful, and I love the Joe Coffee in the library1 Hotel Brooklyn. I kiiind of want to leave them off the list because I had such bad service, but it’s too beautiful to not include. Check out the cafe, hang out in the lobby, or make a res for the rooftop pool.
Brooklyn Botanical Gardens

There are so many more places I love, but these are some of my favourites. My favourite thing of all in new york is to just walk around. Every neighbourhood is so amazing and unique, and it’s just the best place in the world!!

I’ve been in Toronto for the last two weeks staying at my friend Wes’s place while he was away on vacation, and I am totally in love with Toronto!! I had so much fun, and I made a list of some of my favourite places that I visited.

I put * next to the ones I’d recommend if you’re here for a short period of time. A lot of these places were fun to check out since I had so much time here, but aren’t really places you’d need to see if you’re here for a weekend or so, you know? There are only so many coffee shops you can see in a weekend, but I do love all of these spots!

Body Blitz Spa (the water circuit is soo nice)
Reflexology in Chinatown. There are a bunch of places in Chinatown, but the one I went to was on Dundas and it’s right near a set of stairs…vaguest description ever. There’s a sign outside offering an hour of reflexology for $30 (15 mins in a herbal soak, i.e. hot water and a tea bag lol, followed by 45-minute foot massage). You guys, it was amazing!! I would go constantly if I lived here.

I think of blog post ideas all the time and then mentally write them out, but 9 times out of 10 I don’t actually write them down and hit the Publish button. I was thinking about how I don’t like gratitude journals the other day and how I think they’re kind of annoying, so I decided to make this a 1 of out 10 kind of time and write about it.

It’s not that I don’t see the merit in being grateful, and I also don’t want to bash anyone who keeps a gratitude journal- if you like doing it, that’s awesome! It’s just that I personally find them annoying and a chore, and they are one of the many zillions of self-helpy type things I used to make myself do. A major theme of the majority of my 20s was Making Myself Do Things I Don’t Want to Do. Well hey, I’m 30 now, and I’m not wasting my time on that anymore!

To me, writing a gratitude journal feels so forced, and it actually stifles the feelings of gratitude that it’s supposed to be bringing up because I just find it so boring and it feels like I’m doing a homework assignment.

So I don’t do it. I don’t make lists of things I’m grateful for because to me it’s super boring.

I also used to make myself think of things I’m grateful for when something was going wrong because, well that’s what you’re supposed to do right? But that didn’t work for me either! Then I’d kind of just be annoyed that I was tyring to throw some positivity onto my crankiness. Yeah, I’m grateful that I’m healthy and have amazing friends and family, but that doesn’t change the fact that Starbucks ran out of cold brew!! (I know eh, I have a really hard life). No, obviously a lack of cold brew isn’t my only challenge in life, but what I’m trying to say is that sometimes you just need to let yourself be pissed and covering it up with forced gratitude gets you nowhere. I get over things way faster when I just let myself be pissed without trying to guilt myself into focusing on the positive.

I am generally a really grateful person, and I think I can find real happiness in the little things in life, but I feel this when I’m just letting myself be happy rather than writing in a journal or forcing it.

Also, and this sounds kind of weird, but sometimes I think about all of the bad things that haven’t happened to me and that makes me feel really grateful for where I am! Not even big terrible things, but I’ll think things like thank goddd I’m not pregnant or wow, having a broken arm would make things soo annoying right now. And it makes whatever is going on seem not nearly as bad! Like yeah having a rough patch in work is annoying, but having a rough patch at work and an STI? Now that would really suck.

This might be the most random post I’ve ever written, but there you go. Moral of the post? Don’t do things, even things that are supposed to be good for you, that you don’t want to do.

I’m in the middle of a six week trip right now, and I thought I’d share some of my favourite spots that I visit along the way. I was originally going away for 2 weeks (a week in NYC with friends for my birthday and then visiting a friend in Toronto), but I’m in the middle of apartment hunting and couldn’t find a place for October, so I decided to extend my trip and get a place for November instead.

Right now I’m back in Toronto, which I am loving so much!! I’m staying at my friend’s place while he’s away travelling, and yeah it’s just the best. I’ve got a really long list of places to check out while I’m here, so I’ll probably do a Toronto post later on.

Last week I was in Montreal staying with my aunt. We kind of just hung out and this is by no means the ultimate list of things to do in Montreal, just some cool places I checked out while I was there.

Just on a side note, my friend messaged me last week after I posted a photo asking how I find so many cool places, and my answer is Instagram! I used to use Pinterest to plan all of my trips, and I still use it, but Instagram is my go-to. I just search hashtags for whatever it is I’m interested in seeing in that city and see where people are going. For example, #torontocoffee, #torontofoodie, #torontoparks, etc. It’s the best! I’ve found so many amazing places this way.

Here are some places I recommend in Montreal.

Plateau

My aunt lives in a neighbourhood called the Plateau, and it’s a really great part of the city filled with restaurants, boutiques, and cafes and has kind of an artsy vibe.

La Fontaine Park

This park is right by my Aunt’s apartment, and it’s soo pretty and always filled with locals (but in a cozy, neighbourhood feel way, not a crowded way). In the winter, they turn the pond into a skating rink and put up lights and Christmas trees.

Old Montreal

Old Montreal is beautiful, and in my opinion, it’s one of the things that really sets Montreal apart from other big cities. Just walking through here is so gorgeous, and you feel like you’re in Europe- cobblestone streets, old buildings, amazing restaurants, high-end boutiques. Some parts are overrun by tacky tourist souvenir stores, but for the most part, it’s just beautiful

Stash Cafe

A Polish restaurant in Old Montreal that is seriously amazing. I had the krokiety, which is a breaded crepe stuffed with mushrooms or meat, and it was so good. I’d also recommend the borscht and perogies, not because I tried them there, but because you really can’t go wrong with either one in my opinion.

La Finca

Okay I didn’t actually get the chance to hang out here, but it was this amazing cafe near old Montreal (have you noticed I have an obsession with coffee shops? When I travel I spend so much time at them because a) they’re great places to get work done, b) it’s a cool way to see the city without doing boring touristy things, and c) coffee is amazing). Anyways I just stopped in to look and meant to go back, but I ran out of time. It is bright and open, with a super cute back patio, and the food looked amazing.

Cafe Tommy

Super cute spot in Old Montreal! High cielings, white walls, lots of plants- you know, the classic Instagram-worthy cafe. It wasn’t that big, but it managed to fit in tons of seating without being overcrowded, which is a weird observation, but I liked it.

Bar Darling

Probably my favourite coffee shop I’ve been to in Montreal. Omg this place was soo pretty!! It was kind of an industrial meets Americana vibe, filled with plants, leather couches, and metal accents. Almost everyone there was working on their computers, which I loved because some places make you feel awkward for being on your computer, but here it was the go to. Oh and the music was instrumental versions of pop songs, which I have a serious thing for, and it was just so cozy- I felt like I was hanging out in a big, very stylish living room. I wish I could go here every day!!

Cafe OSMO

I loved this coffee shop! It had good coffee, the interior is kind of industrial chic, but still warm and welcoming, there are lots of tables, comfy couches, and an outdoor area. Oh and good croissants. So really, what more do you need in life?

Mount Royal

On my first day there, we walked up the mountain, which is located right in the city. The park is gorgeous, and when you’re in it it’s hard to believe you’re in the middle of a city. It’s a beautiful walk up the mountain, and once you get near the top, there is a lookout area where you have great views of the city.

Mass at Notre Dame

I’m not Catholic, but my Aunt is and we decided to go to mass at Notre Dame. The cathedral is stunning and mass (which is in French) was beautiful. If you want to see the cathedral, this is how I’d recommend seeing it because you just walk right in and it’s free (aside from collection, if you choose to pay that), and you get the full experience. If you don’t do mass, you have to wait in a massive line to get in and pay an entrance fee. Either way, I think it’s worth it.

Afternoon Tea at the Ritz-Carleton

I’d always wanted to do afternoon tea, so my aunt and I went to the tea at the Ritz. It was so nice- you have tea, champagne, and a seriously delicious assortment of sandwiches and pastries. They have seatings every day (I think on weekends too, but I’m not positive) at 12:30 and 3:30.

Atwater Market

This market is really cute, and it has produce stands outside and butchers/gourmet food stores/chocolate shops/etc. inside. My favourite part is out back where they have a bunch of delicious food stalls with international cuisine and picnic tables. My aunt got paella, and I got amazing steam buns.

Canal Lounge

This was another spot I didn’t actually go to, but I was right outside it, and it looked so cool! It’s a small boat that’s been turned into a bar, docked right near Atwater Market. There is seating inside as well as Adirondack chairs at the front (on the bow? I don’t know boat terms at all haha), and then a little outdoor lounge spot at the back. So cute.

Now I’m in Toronto for the next two weeks and then Ottawa for a week. If you have any recommendations in either place I’d love to hear them!!

The hardest part about writing blog posts for me is figuring out which photo to use, so I’m just going with a pic from my Mexico trip even though that has nothing to do with Pilates! I cannot be bothered to coordinate a workout gear selfie. :p

Anyways! I just wanted to write this post to share some great online Pilates sites and YouTube channels. I’ve been doing Pilates at home from my computer for maybe a year and a half now, and I love it SO MUCH, so I talk about it a lot to my friends. Some of them have been asking which sites I like, so I figured the easiest thing to do would be to put them all into a post!

Feel free to just scroll right down to the list, but I wanted to quickly mention why I love Pilates so much. Short answer: I love it because I just click with it. I personally have noticed a major difference in my body since I started and an almost complete elimination of my chronic back pain (caused by minor scoliosis and imbalances). Most importantly, doing it just feels right for me. I love doing it, I love how it makes me feel, and I love how I feel after a class (open and energized rather than drained as I would with things like cardio or Body Pump classes). Aside from lots of walking, Pilates is the only form of exercise I do. And I’m by no means intense about it. I generally do 15-20 min classes, 4x/week.

So, does this mean I recommend that everyone try Pilates? 100% no. Pilates is right for me- we click. It’s made a huge difference to me and countless other people, and I do think it’s a very unique system. BUT I don’t think any form of exercise (or any thing at all) is the be all end all.

I did yoga fairly consistently for a good 7 years and even took my yoga teacher training and taught classes, but I have to say I don’t think I ever truly liked it! I think it just seemed like I should, you know?, so I told myself I liked it. But I spent the majority of the classes watching the clock, and I can’t say it had much of an effect for me physically.

There is so much talk about how amazing yoga is, so I just figured it must be good, and I kept doing it. Clearly, it IS amazing for some people, but it’s not for me. Similarly, Pilates IS amazing for me, but I’d never push it on someone. you. do. you.

Okay, I seriously had planned on just sharing a list of sites and channels, not on talking about this, but here we are. :p And now, here is the list.

My Go-to

After playing around with a lot of different sites, I finally chose Pilates by Lisa, which is an online Pilates membership site run by Aussie Lisa Pentony (read my interview with her here!). This post is in no way sponsored by her, I am just obsessed with her classes. It costs $25/month and she offers a free10-day trial.

Paid Sites

There are a number of other paid sites as well. I personally prefer Pilates by Lisa, but these are definitely worth checking out, and they all also offer free trial periods.

Before I used any membership sites, I was using free Pilates YouTube channels, and actually, I still use these occasionally! There really are a lot of awesome channels out there, and below are my faves.

Oh! and for major Pilates inspo, check out New York Pilates’ Instagram account. And check out a class if you’re in NYC-their studios are the most gorgeous things ever, and just being in one makes you feel cool by default (they’re on ClassPass too!)

I’ve been getting lots of messages from people asking me for advice on what to do in Tulum, so I figured I’d combine it all into a post!

I absolutely loved Tulum. Yes it’s full of tourists, yes it’s by no means off the beaten path, and yes it’s pricey, but do you know why it’s all of these things? Because it’s awesome and gorgeous, and an all around amazing place to visit. Also, it’s full of tourists but not at all in the way that Cancun or Puerto Vallarta are. It just has a chill, low-key vibe, and while it’s not exactly an authentic Mexican experience it is, in my opinion, a must visit.

THE TOWN

Tulum is basically two strips, with a road connecting the two. You have one long road that makes up the town of Tulum and one long road along the beach where you’ll find the best hotels and restaurants. They run parallel, and connecting them is another road that has a few restaurants and accommodations along it. Obviously the dream is to stay at one of the $700/night beach bungalows along the beach road, but if you’re on more of a backpacker budget, you’ll likely be staying in town (note: you can find accommodations for less than $700 along the beach road as well- my point is just that it’s much pricier down there).

The beach road, like I said, is lined with nice hotels (but not the tacky resort kind like you’ll find in Cancun. I’m talking really gorgeous, eco-conscious spots of heaven), healthy and delicious restaurants, and high-ish end boutiques).

The town road is a mix of restaurants, tourist stalls, accommodations, and then services like banks, pharmacies, a massive grocery store, etc. It’s often described as just a dusty strip, but I really liked it! Obviously, the beach road is more the Tulum vibe you see all over Instagram, but the town is cool too, and there are lots of great spots.

ACCOMMODATIONS

I stayed in a total of four different accommodations in Tulum because I kept extending my trip (5 days turned into 2 weeks, and I could have stayed longer!). When I first got there, my friend and I did an AirBnB (reasonably priced and some great options), and then I stayed in a few different hostels. The best by far was Mama’s Home. It fills up fast though, so book in advance if you’re going the hostel route.

Tulum is cool because it suits both a backpacker budget and a high-end luxury travel budget, so regardless of the kind of trip you want, you’ll find a great place to stay.

CENOTES

I absolutely LOVED the cenotes- they were totally one of the trip highlights for me! I’ve never seen such crystal clear water, and I just found them fascinating. There are tons of cenotes around Tulum and the whole Mayan Riviera, but the ones we went to were Gran Cenote and Cenote Tankach-Ha. I recommend doing both because they’re very different. Gran Cenote is an easy cab ride from Tulum and is all above ground (though there is an above ground cave you can swim under), while Cenote Tankach-Ha is a bit further outside of the town, and it’s underground and just soo cool!! We rented a car (more on that below) to get to this one, but I think you can also go with a tour.

Namaste Casa de Te

Hoja Verde

RESTAURANTS + CAFES

Okay, let’s get to the good stuff: Food. There are so many amazing places to eat in Tulum, and you’ll find everything from $1 street tacos to fab seafood restaurants. As with the accommodations, you’ll generally find cheaper, more casual places in town and higher end places along the beach road.

In town, I loved..

Hoja Verde: A vegetarian restaurant where I went almost every day to drink smoothies and get work done (their internet is great). The Tio Bob chocolatey smoothie changed me as a person.

Namaste Casa de Te: One of the most beautiful cafes ever. Beautiful setting, amazing teas, and such a peaceful atmosphere. They are really passionate about tea and will explain their menu and share lots of cool tea info. I had an iced chamomile and lavender tea with coconut milk, and it was amazing!

Del Cielo: Popular breakfast spot on the town road. It serves delicious healthy meals and sells natural beauty and body products.

Ki’bok Coffee: I can’t remember the name of the street this place is on, but there are a bunch of cool restaurants on the same street. The coffee here is SO GOOD! It’s full of tourists on their laptops living the digital nomad dream.

All of the places above are not really budget spots- you’re going to be paying US/Canadian prices for the majority of spots in the town/beach road because it is such a touristy destination. However, you can still get some really awesome budget-friendly street food. As with everywhere, I went in Mexico, I was obsessed with the street tacos and coco paletas.

Along the beach road, I loved…

Raw Love: Pretty sure going here was my main motivation for visiting Tulum and it did not disappoint!! This beautiful outdoor raw cafe is on the property of one of the beachfront resorts, and it was somehow even more amazing than I imagined. There are no words to describe their raw desserts.

Posada Margherita: Beautiful beautiful Italian restaurant along the beach road. I’m running out of adjectives to describe how amazing all of the spots in Tulum are, but this place is just soo…well, beautiful! And the food is delicious, and yeah just go.

Mateos: Nothing particularly amazing about the food here, but you can go up to the top level and get great views of the sunset!

Heartwood: I didn’t actually make it here because you need to make resos well in advance, but if you’re planning a trip to Tulum, make a reservation!! The food is supposed to be amazing.

These are just a few of the many amazing food spots!

BEACHES

There is a public beach you can go to, and it’s gorgeous, but I actually only went here once during my whole trip! Other than that I would go to the beaches of the beach resorts. Basically, you can go onto any of the resorts (again, they’re not resorts like you think of in Cancun) and as long as you buy a drink or whatever at their restaurant, you can hang out on the beach. I loved getting food at Raw Love and then staying on their beach.

GETTING AROUND

As if Tulum weren’t Insta-worthy enough already, all of the tourists get around town on these cute little city bikes. There are bike rental places, and some of the accommodations include free bikes. You can also walk of course, and taxis are really cheap as well.

Some friends and I rented a car one day so we could see some things outside of town, and it’s soo cheap! Right off the town road, on the road that takes you down to the beach, you’ll find a strip of car rental places. Don’t pay the initial price! We went into the first place, they gave us a price, and then we said we were just going to check out the other places to compare, and they instantly dropped down the price to like a quarter of the original.

A note on haggling in Mexico: As a general rule, from my experience and from what I heard from other tourists and expats, haggling is not really a thing in Mexico. The car rental place was really the only time a price was significantly dropped. For the most part, the prices are what they are, they’re not trying to screw you over, and if you try to bargain they’ll generally just say no.

Hmm there’s probably lots that I’m missing, so message me if you have any questions. On this trip, I also visited Mexico City (amazing place!!! I could live there), Puerto Vallarta (skip!), Sayulita (LOVED! Similar vibe to Tulum, though on the Pacific so you’re not getting the white sand beaches), San Miguel de Allende (beautiful), Isla Mujeres (very touristy, but beautiful. Consider nearby Isla Holbox if you want less touristy but same beauty), Bacalar (another skip in my opinion), and Puerto Escondido (cool! But preferred Tulum and Sayulita- but a lot of people are obsessed so worth considering). Send me a message if you want more info on any of these places.

I absolutely fell in love with Mexico in the 2 months I spent there. Such an amazing amazing country. The food, the people, the culture, the beaches, the towns, everything is just so good!!! Go! Just book your ticket and go.

Just wanted to do a quick post because I changed my site name and URL today and am so excited about it!! My Spiritual Roadtrip just didn’t feel right anymore- it was all about searching for something, and I don’t feel that need anymore, so I’m going back to basics and now all of my platforms are under my name.

Also, I’m in Mexico at the moment and completely in love with it! I might do a blog post at the end of my trip just highlighting where I went/places I recommend etc., but I’m not sure if I will, so feel free to send me a message if you want info! And you can see pics of my trip on my Instagram.

Honestly, I think the main motivation for this post was just so I could post this picture on my site. :p I took it in the fall when I was at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens, and I just love it. I got so many pretty photos that day- if you’re in Brooklyn definitely check it out! (I think it’s free Tuesday mornings!).

Hey guys! While I am no longer blogging (at least for the time being) I am continuing to write for both clients and other sites! Recently, I’ve teamed up with Tiny Devotions to create a series on mindful living in our material world. Over the next few months, I’ll be talking about how we can bring mindfulness to all of our daily activities including social media use, shopping, and even getting drinks at the bar! It’s a topic that I find so fascinating, and I’m really excited to get the chance to share this message through Tiny Devotions.

If you aren’t already familiar with them, be sure to check out their site! They make the most beautiful mala bead jewellery and they have really beautiful accessories like journals and crystal candles!